Baseball arms reunited (VIDEO)

June 13, 2013 at 1:13 a.m.

Lucas Humpal, 19, left, and his brother Nathan Humpal, 21, right, are both pitching for the Generals this summer. The brothers, originally from Corpus Christi, decided to go to different colleges after high school but have come together as Generals to once again play for the same team.
Angeli Wright
for The Victoria Advocate

The Humpal Files

Pitching: Pitched in two games. Eight innings pitched and has a 2.25 ERA

• Batting: .133 Batting average. 2 hits and 2 RBIs in 15 at bats.

Lucas Humpal

• Pitched in one game. Four innings pitched and has an 9.00 ERA with seven strikeouts. (Stats as of Tues.)

Nathan and Lucas Humpal went separate ways after high school to achieve their goals on the baseball diamond.

Both are well on their way to achieving those goals, too.

Nathan just completed his junior year at St. Mary's, while Lucas played his first year of collegiate baseball at Texas State.

But an opportunity to reunite on the baseball field one last time was something neither player wanted to pass up.

Wearing Victoria Generals uniforms, the Humpal brothers are playing together for the first time since high school.

"It's kind of nice to finish my baseball season playing with Lucas this year," said Nathan, 21. "It's a nice cherry on top to finish out my time playing with him."

The Corpus Christi natives are not on the field regularly because they are pitchers. Lucas is a starting pitcher, while Nathan comes to pitch in relief. That wasn't always the case.

At Corpus Christi John Paul II, Nathan pitched while Lucas was a catcher. They played one season together at John Paul II before Nathan graduated, and Lucas transferred to Flour Bluff because he felt he had a better chance to be successful.

"He knew a lot more than I did," Lucas, 19, said about playing on the same high school team. "He helped me in how to grow up. But now that we're both grown up, it's a little different since we both have our ways of doing things."

Nathan graduated high school in 2010 and spent two years at Wharton County Junior College, where he met pitching coach Stephen Flora, the Generals head coach. Nathan excelled at Wharton and was good enough to land a spot at St. Mary's.

But of the two, Lucas became the more polished pitcher at Texas State.

Lucas made five starts for the Bobcats and pitched in 22 games, good for a 3-2 record with a 3.02 ERA. Nathan pitched 17 innings, which translated into a 6.75 ERA.

Given the stats, Flora still believes Lucas can learn from Nathan. Flora has seen both players but has worked with Nathan for nearly three years.

"(Nathan) used to be a little bit unknowing of the game. Now, he's become a student of the game and really knows a lot about the different situations and scenarios," Flora said. "They're two completely different ball players, but they have so many of the similar mannerisms."

Through Tuesday, Lucas has pitched in only one game for the Generals, while Nathan has played in five games at first base and two as a pitcher.

After this season, both players will go back to their respective schools.

Nathan said that he's unlikely to get drafted to play professional baseball. He doesn't mind, as he will graduate with a degree in electrical engineering.

Lucas believes he has a chance to play professionally. For now, he's focused on enjoying the time he has with his older brother.

"I picked to be on this team because I wanted to play with him," Lucas said. "This is probably the last time I'll ever get to play with him in my life."